StickyArch

Bottesini, Giovanni

2005-04-04T05:59:00.000-07:00

Bottesini received basic training in music at an early age from his father, a composer and clarinetist. His choice of the double bass as his specialty came about

Smith, David

2005-04-03T07:10:00.000-07:00

Smith was never trained as a sculptor, but

Uttlesford

2005-04-02T17:53:00.000-08:00

District, administrative and historic county of Essex, England. It occupies the northwestern corner of the county, where it borders Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire. A low ridge of chalk hills runs from southwest to northeast through a rolling countryside. The district is largely rural. The main town is Saffron Walden; there are also many smaller old parishes, such

Saarland

2005-04-02T01:54:00.000-08:00

The coal seams stretch for a distance of about

Molinos, Miguel De

2005-04-01T09:42:00.000-08:00

Ordained in 1652, Molinos in 1663 was sent to Rome. There, in 1675, he published his Spiritual Guide, a small handbook teaching that Christian perfection is achieved by a mixture of contemplation

Tea Ceremony

2005-03-31T09:36:00.000-08:00

The ceremony takes place in a tea house (cha-shitsu), which ideally is a small structure detached from the

Uaxactún

2005-03-30T21:37:00.000-08:00

Ruined ancient Mayan city of the southern lowlands, located in what is now north-central Guatemala, about 12 miles (20 km) north of the ancient Mayan city of Tikal. Uaxactún was a ceremonial centre of only modest size, compared with Tikal, but it has been important in Mayan archaeology because intensive excavations made there by archaeologists of the Carnegie Institution

Chastelard, Pierre De Bocosel De

2005-03-30T16:38:00.000-08:00

Grandson of Pierre Terrail, chevalier de Bayard, Chastelard became page to the constable Montmorency and frequented the court of Francis II of France, where he fell in love with the queen consort, Mary, who is said to have encouraged his passion.

Smith, Bernard

2005-03-29T06:49:00.000-08:00

Smith was an apprentice of the German organ builder Christian Förmer but adapted easily to the English style of building after his emigration there in 1660. Some years after building an instrument for the Chapel Royal at London, Smith was named king's organ maker (1681). Thereafter he built many important

Saronic Gulf

2005-03-29T04:44:00.000-08:00

Modern Greek Saronikós Kólpos, also called Gulf Of Aegina, gulf of the Aegean Sea between Ákra (cape) Soúnion of the Attica peninsula and Ákra Skíllaion of the Argolis peninsula of the Greek Peloponnese. A maximum of 50 mi (80 km) long northwest–southeast and about 30 mi wide, it is linked on the west to the Gulf of Corinth by the Corinth Canal. At its widest point the gulf is divided by three of the Saronic islands: Salamís, Aíyina (Aegina), and

Fish Owl

2005-03-28T19:57:00.000-08:00

The brown fish owl (K. zeylonensis) ranges from the eastern Mediterranean to Taiwan and Japan. Pel's fishing owl (S.

Balboa

2005-03-27T04:51:00.000-08:00

Pacific terminal port in central Panama, at the southern end of the Panama Canal. It lies between the canal docks and Ancón Hill, which separates it from Panama City. Founded in 1914 and named for Vasco Núñez de Balboa, European discoverer of the Pacific, it has extensive harbour installations, drydocks, marine and railroad repair shops, warehouses, and a coaling plant. Balboa

Kubrick, Stanley

2005-03-26T13:22:00.000-08:00

Having become interested in photography in high school, Kubrick became a staff photographer

Lancaster, House Of

2005-03-26T05:59:00.000-08:00

The family name first appeared in 1267, when the title earl of Lancaster was granted to Edmund “Crouchback” (1245–96), the youngest son of Henry III. Two of Edmund's sons by his second

Toastmaster's Glass

2005-03-25T21:49:00.000-08:00

English glass about the size of an ordinary drinking glass but with only about one-quarter of its capacity; the glass creates the illusion of being full by means of a depression in its bowl, which in fact is almost solid. It owed its origin to the clubs of 18th-century England, where the toastmaster had to remain sober enough to carry out his office.

Handel, George Frideric

2005-03-25T11:06:00.000-08:00

German (until 1715) Georg Friedrich Händel or Georg Friedrich Haendel German-born English composer of the late Baroque era, noted particularly for his operas, oratorios, and instrumental compositions. He wrote the most famous of all oratorios, the Messiah (1741), and is also known for such occasional pieces as Water Music (1717) and Music for the Royal Fireworks (1749).

Orange

2005-03-24T04:17:00.000-08:00

Any of several species of small trees or shrubs of the genus Citrus of the family Rutaceae and their nearly round fruits, which have leathery and oily rinds and edible, juicy inner flesh. The species of orange most important commercially are the China orange, also called the sweet, or common, orange; the mandarin orange, some varieties of which are called tangerine

Yiddish Literature

2005-03-22T10:02:00.000-08:00

Yiddish literature culminated in the period from 1864 to 1939, inspired by modernization and then severely diminished by the Holocaust. It arose in Europe out of a tradition that gave precedence to Hebrew prayers, commentaries, and scripture.

Sankt Pölten

2005-03-22T08:20:00.000-08:00

City, Niederösterreich Bundesland (federal state), northeastern Austria. It lies along the Traisen River between the foothills of the Alps and the Danube River, west of Vienna. Once the site of the Roman settlement of Aelium Cetium, the town developed in the 8th century around an abbey dedicated to St. Hippolytus, whose name in Germanicized form became Sankt Pölten. The

Earth Exploration, Geothermal methods

2005-03-22T01:59:00.000-08:00

Temperature-gradient measurements are sometimes made to detect heat-flow anomalies; however, most exploration for geothermal resources (e.g., superheated water and steam) is done with indirect methods. Resistivity or seismic methods, for example, may be used to map the magma chamber, which is the source of the heat, or to detect faults or other features that control

Pacific Ocean, Submarine hydrocarbons

2005-03-21T21:39:00.000-08:00

Deposits of oil and gas under the seafloor are the most valuable and sought-after fuels of the modern world economy. Shallow seas and small ocean basins, such as the South and East China seas, are thought to have a high potential for large reserves. Among the countries bordering the Pacific Ocean and its marginal seas, the proportion of production from submarine reserves

Lateen Sail

2005-03-21T10:45:00.000-08:00

Triangular sail that was of decisive importance to medieval navigation. The ancient square sail permitted sailing only before the wind; the lateen was the earliest fore-and-aft sail. The triangular sail was affixed to a long yard or crossbar, mounted at its middle to the top of the mast and angled to extend aft far above the mast and forward down nearly to the deck. The

Economic Geology

2005-03-18T20:51:00.000-08:00

Economic geology deals with metal ores, fossil fuels (e.g., petroleum, natural gas, and coal), and other materials of commercial value, such as salt, gypsum, and building stone. It applies the

Manchester, Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl Of, Viscount Mandeville, Baron Kimbolton Of Kimbolton

2005-03-18T20:21:00.000-08:00

Son of the 1st earl, Henry Montagu, he was educated at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. He sat in Parliament from 1624 to 1626 and in the latter year was raised to the peerage as Baron Kimbolton, but he was known generally by his courtesy title of Viscount Mandeville. At the beginning of the Long Parliament

France, History Of, The grandsons of Clovis

2005-03-18T04:43:00.000-08:00

At the death of Chlotar I (561) the Frankish kingdom, which had become the most powerful state in the west, was once again divided, this time between his four sons. The partition agreement, based on that of 511, dealt with more extensive territories. Guntram received the eastern part of the former kingdom of Orléans, enlarged by the addition of Burgundy. Charibert I's share was fashioned

Botucatu

2005-03-18T03:23:00.000-08:00

City, central São Paulo estado (“state”), Brazil. It lies near the Pardo River in the Serra de Botucatu at 2,549 feet (777 m) above sea level. It was given town status in 1855 and was made the seat of a municipality in 1876. Crops (including coffee, cotton, rice, sugarcane, feijão [beans], and potatoes) grown in the region are processed in the city, which also has foundries, textile mills, bakeries, and factories

'olam Ha-ba

2005-03-17T09:32:00.000-08:00

In Jewish theology, either “the world after death” or the new creation or restoration of the world that is to follow the messianic millennium. Because this latter interpretation stemmed from the teachings and exhortations of the prophets, it was especially prevalent during the period of the Second Temple of Jerusalem (516 BC–AD 70). Whatever the interpretation of 'olam ha-ba, it

Oscillator

2005-03-16T18:47:00.000-08:00

Any of various electronic devices that produce alternating electric current, commonly employing tuned circuits and amplifying components such as thermionic vacuum tubes. Oscillators used to generate high-frequency currents for carrier waves in radio broadcasting often are stabilized by coupling the electronic circuit with the vibrations of a piezoelectric

Kirby, Rollin

2005-03-16T17:25:00.000-08:00

Kirby studied painting in New York City and Paris as a young man but switched to magazine illustrating and then cartooning. Kirby made his reputation during the 18 years (1913 to 1931) he spent on the New York

Mountain Goat

2005-03-16T02:22:00.000-08:00

Also called Rocky Mountain Goat (Oreamnos americanus), North American ruminant, family Bovidae (order Artiodactyla). Mountain goats occur from the Yukon to the northern U.S. Rockies. Although goatlike, they are more closely related to antelopes than to true goats. Stocky, and with a slight hump at the withers, mountain goats stand about 1 m (39 inches) at the shoulder. Members of both sexes

Daedalus

2005-03-15T11:04:00.000-08:00

(Greek: “Skillfully Wrought”), mythical Greek architect and sculptor, who was said to have built, among other things, the paradigmatic Labyrinth for King Minos of Crete. Daedalus fell out of favour with Minos and was imprisoned; he fashioned wings of wax and feathers for himself and for his son Icarus and escaped to Sicily. Icarus, however, flew too near the Sun, and his wings

Dabrowa Górnicza

2005-03-15T05:56:00.000-08:00

City, Katowice województwo (province), southwestern Poland, on the Czarna Przemsza River just northeast of Katowice city. The town flourished when coal mining began there in 1796. During the 19th century it served as a mining and metallurgical research centre and had the first Polish mining school (1889). It became a town in 1916. Dabrowa Górnicza is situated in the Górny Slask (Upper Silesia)

Bradley, F(rancis) H(erbert)

2005-03-14T13:24:00.000-08:00

Elected to a fellowship at Merton College, Oxford, in 1870, Bradley soon became ill with a kidney disease that made him a semi-invalid

Earth Exploration, Gravity methods

2005-03-14T00:08:00.000-08:00

The gravity field of the Earth can be measured by timing the free fall of an object in a vacuum, by measuring the period of a pendulum, or in various other ways. Today almost all gravity surveying is done with gravimeters. Such an instrument typically consists of a weight attached to a spring that stretches or contracts corresponding to an increase or decrease in gravity.

Tasmania, Agriculture, forestry, and fishing

2005-03-13T03:52:00.000-08:00

Less than a third of Tasmania's area is agricultural land; almost all of it is used for grazing; just under half is sown pasture, and the rest is used for rough grazing or is open forest. Crops occupy only 4 percent of agricultural land but contribute one-third of the total value of agricultural production. Seasonal irrigation, mainly spray for crops and some pasture, is

La Galissonnière, Roland-michel Barrin, Marquis De

2005-03-12T19:40:00.000-08:00

La Galissonnière was the son of a naval lieutenant-general and studied at the College of Beauvais in Paris. He became a midshipman in the French navy in 1710 and, in the following year, made the first of a number of voyages on the Heros carrying supplies to Canada. Some 26 years later he commanded

Palana

2005-03-12T17:45:00.000-08:00

Urban settlement and administrative centre of Koryak autonomous okrug (district), Kamchatka oblast (province), far eastern Russia. The settlement is situated on the western coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula and lies along the Palana River, 5 miles (8 km) from its mouth on the Sea of Okhotsk. The district was formed in 1930. The settlement has a regional museum. Pop. (1993 est.) 4,100.

East China Sea

2005-03-12T11:26:00.000-08:00

Chinese (Wade-Giles) Tung Hai, or (Pinyin) Dong Hai, arm of the Pacific Ocean and part of the China Sea (q.v.). It covers about 290,000 square miles (752,000 square km) and is bounded by the islands of Cheju (north), Kyushu (northeast), the Ryukyu chain (east), and Taiwan (south) and by China (west). It is connected to the South China Sea by the Taiwan Strait. Its Chinese name means “eastern sea.”

Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus

2005-03-10T02:56:00.000-08:00

In spite of his success as a pianist and composer, Mozart had serious financial worries, and they worsened as the famously fickle Viennese found other idols. One may calculate his likely income during his last five years, 1786–91, as being far larger than that of most musicians though much below that of the section of society with which he wanted to be associated; Leopold's early

Golden Age

2005-03-10T00:32:00.000-08:00

Spanish Siglo De Oro, the period of Spanish literature extending from the early 16th century to the late 17th century, generally considered the high point in Spain's literary history. The Golden Age began with the partial political unification of Spain about 1500. Its literature is characterized by patriotic and religious fervour, heightened realism, and a new interest in earlier epics and

Visby

2005-03-09T22:49:00.000-08:00

A Stone Age settlement and port existed (c.

Alabama, Climate

2005-03-08T19:51:00.000-08:00

The Alabama climate is temperate, with an average annual temperature of about 64° F (18° C), mellowed by altitude to some 60° F (16° C) in the northern counties and reaching 67° F (19° C) in the southern counties, although summer heat is often alleviated somewhat by the winds blowing in from the Gulf. Occasionally the temperature may rise to 100° F (38° C) in the summer, whereas snow may occasionally fall in

Andrew Of Carniola

2005-03-08T19:22:00.000-08:00

From the scant data available on Andrew's life, it appears that he was

Nabataean

2005-03-08T10:50:00.000-08:00

Member of a people of ancient Arabia whose settlements lay in the borderlands between Syria and Arabia, from the Euphrates River to the Red Sea. Little is known about them before 312 BC, when they were unsuccessfully attacked by Demetrius I Poliorcetes, king of Macedonia, in their mountain fortress of Petra south of the Dead Sea. Their monopoly on the rich caravan trade that

Sørensen, Rasmus Møller

2005-03-07T18:53:00.000-08:00

In the 1820s and 1830s Sørensen, serving as tutor on the estates of several progressive landowners, developed his ideas of peasant reform. He championed the opening of folk high schools for practical

Argentina

2005-03-07T11:41:00.000-08:00

The population of the area now called Argentina may have totaled 300,000 before

Levant

2005-03-07T07:29:00.000-08:00

(from the French lever, “to rise,” as in sunrise, meaning the east), historically the countries along the eastern Mediterranean shores. Common use of the term is associated with Venetian and other trading ventures and the establishment of commerce with cities such as Tyre and Sidon as a result of the Crusades. It was applied to the coastlands of Asia Minor and Syria, sometimes

France, History Of

2005-03-06T03:02:00.000-08:00

From the 9th to the 11th century the peoples and lands dominated by west Frankish kings were transformed. The Carolingian protectorate of local order collapsed under the pressures of external invasions and internal usurpations of power. Growing populations and quickening economies were reorganized in principalities whose leaders struggled to carry on the

Anselm Of Laon,

2005-03-05T05:33:00.000-08:00

Anselm apparently studied at Bec, Fr., under St. Anselm of Canterbury. In the final quarter of the 11th century, he taught with distinction at Paris, where with William of Champeaux he supported realism. About 1100 he returned to Laon, where his theological and exegetical

Ovimbundu

2005-03-04T09:36:00.000-08:00

The ruling families entered the highlands from the northeast in the 17th century, subduing and incorporating the indigenous cattle-keeping peoples. They

Shiga Naoya

2005-03-04T07:05:00.000-08:00

Born into an aristocratic samurai family, Shiga was taken by his parents to live with his paternal grandparents in Tokyo in 1885. In his youth he was influenced by the Christian educator Uchimura Kanzo, but Christianity

Adams, Abigail

2005-03-04T00:19:00.000-08:00

Until the 20th century few first ladies shared Abigail Adams's interest in politics or in the treatment of government leaders by the press. She vigorously objected to what she considered inaccurate reporting on her husband and son. But she was not altogether surprised by the “lies [and] Falshoods,” writing in 1797 to her sister that she “expected to be vilified and abused, with my whole family.” Although her approach to the office of first lady was in many ways advanced, her fame rests primarily on her thousands of letters, which form an eloquent and evocative description of her life and times.

Abadan

2005-03-03T20:58:00.000-08:00

Arabic 'Abbadan city, extreme southwestern Iran. The city is situated in Khuzestan, part of the oil-producing region of Iran. Abadan lies on an island of the same name along the eastern bank of the Shatt Al-'Arab (river), 33 miles (53 km) from the Persian Gulf. The city thus lies along Iran's border with Iraq. Abadan Island is bounded on the west by the Shatt Al-'Arab and on the east by the Bahmanshir, which is an outlet

Glycogen Storage Disease

2005-03-03T08:06:00.000-08:00

In the liver group, type O is set apart as

Nature, Philosophy Of, The range of topics

2005-03-02T14:08:00.000-08:00

An investigation of recent writings in biophilosophy reveals a continued preoccupation with unanswered—some say unanswerable—questions about evolutionary theory and a growing concern for a critical reappraisal of the question of whether biology is an autonomous discipline unamenable to reduction to mere physical and chemical underpinnings. Until the

Alisar Hüyük

2005-03-02T01:11:00.000-08:00

Site of an ancient Anatolian town southeast of Bogazköy in central Turkey. Thorough and extensive excavations there by the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago (1927–32) were the first systematic stratigraphic investigations on the Anatolian plateau. In the long succession of strata revealed at Alisar Hüyük—from Chalcolithic (c. 4000–c. 2600 BC) to Phrygian (c. 1200– c. 700 BC)—the only era

Fuel Injection

2005-03-01T14:20:00.000-08:00

In an internal-combustion engine, introduction of fuel into the cylinders by means of a pump rather than by the suction created by the movement of the pistons. On diesel engines, which have no spark plugs, the heat created by compressing air in the cylinders ignites the fuel, which has been pumped as a spray into the heated air. In engines with spark ignition, fuel-injection

China, Armed forces

2005-03-01T05:45:00.000-08:00

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the unified organization of all Chinese land, sea, and air forces. The history of the PLA is officially traced to the Nan-ch'ang Uprising of Aug. 1, 1927, which is celebrated annually as PLA Day. The PLA is one of the world's largest military forces, with approximately 3,000,000 members. Military service is compulsory for all men who attain the age of 18; women

Medicine, History Of, Hellenistic and Roman medicine

2005-02-28T11:38:00.000-08:00

In the following century the work of Aristotle, regarded as the first great biologist, was of inestimable value to medicine. A pupil of Plato at Athens and tutor to Alexander the Great, Aristotle studied the entire world of living things. He laid what can be identified as the foundations of comparative anatomy and embryology, and his views influenced scientific thinking

Insurance, Homeowner's insurance

2005-02-28T08:02:00.000-08:00

Homeowner's insurance covers individual, or nonbusiness, property. Introduced in 1958, it gradually replaced the older method of insuring individual property under the “standard fire policy.”

Wesley, John

2005-02-27T05:01:00.000-08:00

John Wesley was the second son of Samuel, a former Nonconformist (dissenter from the Church of England) and rector at Epworth, and Susanna Wesley. After six years of education at the Charterhouse, London,

Huila

2005-02-26T11:54:00.000-08:00

Departamento, southwestern Colombia, occupying the Andean Cordilleras (mountains) Oriental and Central, which are separated by the upper Magdalena River valley. Created in 1905, it was named for the snowcapped mountain Nevado del Huila (17,844 feet [5,439 m]), which dominates much of the landscape. Since colonial times, this part of the upper Magdalena valley has been mostly a livestock-raising

'alenu

2005-02-26T09:37:00.000-08:00

(Hebrew: “it is our duty”), the opening word of an extremely old Jewish prayer, which has been recited at the end of the three periods of daily prayer since the European Middle Ages. The first section of the 'alenu is a prayer of thanks for having set Israel apart for the service of God; the second section, omitted by those who follow the Sephardic (Spanish) rite, expresses a hope

Itelmen

2005-02-26T04:13:00.000-08:00

Their Luorawetlan language of

Diet

2005-02-25T23:23:00.000-08:00

Under the Meiji Constitution of 1889, the Imperial Diet was established on the basis of two houses with coequal powers. The upper house, the House of Peers (Kizokuin), was almost wholly appointive. Initially, its membership was slightly less than 300, but it was subsequently increased to approximately 400. The peers were intended to represent

Haldimand, Sir Frederick

2005-02-24T09:47:00.000-08:00

Haldimand entered British service in 1756 as a lieutenant colonel in the Royal American Regiment. He served in Sir Jeffrey Amherst's expedition (1760) against Montreal during the Seven Years' War between Great Britain and France, then stayed there as second in command

Allen, Florence Ellinwood

2005-02-24T01:03:00.000-08:00

Allen was a descendant of American Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen. She graduated from Western Reserve University's College for Women in 1904 and for two years studied music in Berlin. An injury prevented

Maranville, Rabbit

2005-02-23T20:42:00.000-08:00

Maranville, who batted and threw right-handed, played minor league baseball during the years 1911–12 for a team in New Bedford, Massachusetts. He joined the National League Boston Braves in 1912, playing with them through

Switzerland, Environment

2005-02-23T16:09:00.000-08:00

A number of environmental problems must be addressed if Switzerland is to maintain the integrity of its unique landscape. Air pollution in the cities and the mountain valleys, depending on atmospheric conditions, has steadily worsened despite federal legislation. All Swiss vehicles must pass an annual emissions test; however, weak links are the millions of foreign

Brief

2005-02-23T13:52:00.000-08:00

In the United States a brief is a written legal argument that is presented to a court to aid it in reaching a conclusion on the legal issues involved in the case. It is invariably employed in appellate courts

Davie, Donald Alfred

2005-02-22T16:26:00.000-08:00

Davie served in the Royal Navy during World War II and obtained bachelor's (1947) and doctoral (1951) degrees from the University of Cambridge. He taught at Trinity College, Dublin (1950–57), Cambridge (1958–64), the University of Essex (1964–68), and Stanford

Botha, Louis

2005-02-21T17:47:00.000-08:00

The son of a voortrekker (pioneer settler of the interior), he grew up in the Orange Free State, where he received his only formal education at

Eemian Interglacial Stage

2005-02-21T14:15:00.000-08:00

Major division of Pleistocene time and deposits in Europe (the Pleistocene Epoch began about 1,600,000 years ago and ended about 10,000 years ago). The Eemian Interglacial followed the Saale Glacial Stage and preceded the Weichsel Glacial Stage; the Eemian is correlated with the Ipswichian Interglacial of Britain and the Riss-Würm Interglacial Stage of the Alpine region of Europe.

Triad

2005-02-21T08:49:00.000-08:00

In music, a chord of three tones, consisting of a root with its third and fifth and constituting the harmonic basis of tonal music. See chord.

Thomas, Martha Carey

2005-02-21T05:56:00.000-08:00

Carey Thomas, as she preferred to be known, was the daughter of a modestly prosperous Quaker family. She attended Quaker schools in her native Baltimore, Maryland, and in Ithaca, New York, then overrode her father's objections

Soga, Tiyo

2005-02-19T10:21:00.000-08:00

Xhosa journalist, minister, translator, composer of hymns, and collector of black South African fables, legends, proverbs, history, praises, and customs. His translation of John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress (U-Hambo lom-Hambi, 1866) had almost as great an influence upon the Xhosa

Soignies

2005-02-18T19:23:00.000-08:00

(French), Flemish Zinnik town (commune), Hainaut province, south-central Belgium. It lies along the Senne River, just northeast of Mons. There was a Roman castrum (fortress) at the site, and the town was said to have been founded in the 7th century by St. Vincent, who built a monastery there. A procession during Pentecost honours St. Vincent. The former conventual church (10th–13th century), one of Belgium's best-preserved

Qatar

2005-02-18T18:06:00.000-08:00

A monarchy (emirate) on the Arabian Peninsula, Qatar occupies a desert peninsula and the nearby small Hawar Islands (also claimed by Bahrain) on the west coast of the Persian Gulf. Area (including Hawar Islands): 11,427 sq km (4,412 sq mi). Pop. (1996 est.): 590,000. Cap.: Doha. Monetary unit: Qatar riyal, with (Oct. 11, 1996) an official rate of 3.64 riyals to U.S. $1 (5.73 riyals = £1 sterling). Emir and prime minister in 1996, Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifah

Arnold, Matthew

2005-02-18T09:43:00.000-08:00

Matthew was the eldest son of the renowned Thomas Arnold, who was appointed headmaster of Rugby School in 1828. Matthew entered Rugby (1837) and then attended Oxford as a scholar of Balliol College; there he won the Newdigate Prize with his poem Cromwell (1843) and was graduated with second-class honours in 1844. For Oxford Arnold retained an impassioned affection. His Oxford was the Oxford

Pierce, John Davis

2005-02-17T15:06:00.000-08:00

Though denied an extensive education as a youth because of his father's early death and consequent family financial limitations, Pierce decided at age 20 to educate himself. He succeeded so well that he was

'abd Al-qadir Al-jilani

2005-02-16T06:21:00.000-08:00

He studied Islamic law in Baghdad and was introduced to Sufism rather late in life, first appearing as a preacher in 1127. His great reputation as a preacher and teacher attracted disciples from the entire Islamic world, and he is said to have converted numerous Jews and Christians

Ts'ao Kuo-chiu

2005-02-16T02:46:00.000-08:00

Pinyin Cao Guojiu, in Chinese mythology, one of the Pa Hsien, the Eight Immortals of Taoism. Ts'ao is sometimes depicted in official robes and hat and carrying a tablet indicative of his rank and of his right to palace audiences. He was a man of exemplary character who often reminded a dissolute brother that though one can escape the laws of man, one cannot avoid the nets of heaven. In another

Yemen

2005-02-15T19:02:00.000-08:00

A republic of the southwestern Arabian Peninsula, Yemen has coastlines on the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the Arabian Sea. Area: 527,970 sq km (203,850 sq mi), including 55,871 sq km of undemarcated area bordered by Saudi Arabia and claimed by the former Yemen Arab Republic (North Yemen). Pop. (1995 est.): 13,058,000. Cap.: San'a`. Monetary unit: Yemen Rial, with (Oct. 6, 1995) an official par value of YRls 50 to U.S. $1 (YRls 79.04 = £1 sterling) and a free

Zambezi River, Climate

2005-02-15T17:13:00.000-08:00

The Zambezi River lies within the tropics. The upper and middle course of the river is on an upland plateau, and temperatures, modified by altitude, are relatively mild, generally between 64° and 86° F (18° and 30° C). The winter months (May to July) are cool and dry, with temperatures averaging 68° F (20° C). Between August and October there is a considerable rise in average temperatures, particularly

Gyda Peninsula

2005-02-15T05:48:00.000-08:00

Also called Gydan Peninsula, Russian Gydansky Poluostrov, peninsula, northern Russia. It is a northern extension of the West Siberian Plain reaching into the Kara Sea and situated between the bays of Ob and Tazovsky to the west and the estuary of the Yenisey River to the east. The peninsula is about 250 miles (400 km) long and is similar in width. It is predominantly low-lying, varying in elevation between 165 and 525 feet (50 and 160 m). The peninsula is

Cilea, Francesco

2005-02-14T11:56:00.000-08:00

While studying at the Naples Conservatory, Cilea produced an opera, Gina, which secured for him a commission from a publisher. His first important work, L'Arlesiana (1897), after Alphonse Daudet, was the vehicle for the tenor Enrico Caruso's first success. Cilea's

Shield Fern

2005-02-12T22:20:00.000-08:00

Also called wood fern any member of the fern genus Dryopteris, in the family Aspleniaceae. The genus has about 150 species with worldwide distribution, and it is placed in the family Aspidiaceae in some classification systems. Shield ferns are medium-sized woodland plants with bright-green, leathery leaves that are several times divided. They have numerous round spore clusters (sori) attached

Ebullism

2005-02-12T19:41:00.000-08:00

In the atmospheric pressure at sea level (760 mm of mercury), water boils at 212° F (100° C). When the pressure on a liquid

Arnulf Of Chocques

2005-02-12T17:16:00.000-08:00

Also called Arnulf Malecorne Latin patriarch of Jerusalem in 1099 and again from 1112 until his death. Accompanying the First Crusade as chaplain to Robert I, duke of Normandy, Arnulf won fame as a preacher. Elected patriarch on August 1, 1099, he forced all local Christians to conform with the Latin rite. After Christmas 1099 he was superseded as patriarch by the papal legate Daimbert. During his second term he worked

Clanvowe, Sir Thomas

2005-02-12T07:38:00.000-08:00

English courtier and poet, the reputed author of The Cuckoo and the Nightingale, a poetic debate about love, long attributed to Geoffrey Chaucer. The poem is a traditional dialogue between the two birds on the power of love, with delicate and attractive descriptions of spring, and a verse style that, though faulty at times, is Chaucerian in inspiration. The Cuckoo and

Van Depoele, Charles Joseph

2005-02-11T19:17:00.000-08:00

After immigrating to the United States in 1869, Van Depoele became a successful manufacturer of church furniture and then began to pursue his interest in electricity. In addition to his notable

K.g.

2005-02-11T15:24:00.000-08:00

Knight of the Garter, member of one of the most exclusive orders of knighthood in the world. See Garter, The Most Noble Order of the.

Andragoras

2005-02-11T11:40:00.000-08:00

Seleucid satrap (governor) of Parthia during the mid-3rd century. He apparently defied Seleucid imperial authority, which was weakly established in his area, and issued coins on which his image bore the royal diadem. After ruling only a few years, he was defeated and killed by Parni tribesmen from the Caspian steppes led by Arsaces, who later set up an independent kingdom

Amphibious Warfare

2005-02-10T07:07:00.000-08:00

Military operations characterized by attacks launched from the sea by naval and landing forces against hostile shores. The main form is the amphibious assault, which may be conducted for any of several purposes: to serve as a prelude to further combat operations ashore; to seize a site required as an advanced naval or air base; or to deny the use of the site or area to

Bulge, Battle Of The

2005-02-09T11:31:00.000-08:00

Also called Battle Of The Ardennes (Dec. 16, 1944–Jan. 16, 1945), the last German offensive on the Western Front during World War II; an unsuccessful attempt to push the Allies back from German home territory. The name Battle of the Bulge was appropriated from Winston Churchill's optimistic description, in May 1940, of the resistance that he mistakenly supposed was being offered to the Germans' breakthrough in that area just

Cabal

2005-02-08T20:16:00.000-08:00

A private organization or party engaged in secret intrigues; also, the intrigues themselves. In England the word was used during the 17th century to describe the mystical interpretation of the Hebrew scripture (the Cabala, or Kabbala), as well as to describe any secret or extralegal council of the king, especially the foreign committee of the Privy Council. The term took

Illinois, Resources

2005-02-08T16:16:00.000-08:00

Illinois ranks second in the United States in reserves of coal overall and first in reserves of bituminous coal. Although Illinois is not the nation's leading coal producer, coal is the state's leading mineral commodity in value. Peak petroleum production was reached in 1940 and has declined since. Illinois leads in the mining of fluorspar, tripoli, and industrial

Minangkabau

2005-02-08T05:44:00.000-08:00

Malay Urang Padang (People of Padang) largest ethnic group on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia, whose traditional homeland is the west central highlands. Their numbers have been variously estimated at between 2,000,000 and 5,000,000. Although Muslim, the Minangkabau are matrilineal—i.e., they trace descent and inheritance through the female line. Traditionally, the wife remained with her maternal relatives after marriage,

France, Collège De

2005-02-06T21:10:00.000-08:00

State-supported research institution and centre for adult education in Paris. Founded in 1530 by Francis I, it was originally the Collegium Trilinguae (College of Three Languages). It offers lectures by scholars chosen for eminence in their particular fields without reference to academic qualifications. Professorial chairs are not necessarily permanent, and fields

Sung Dynasty

2005-02-06T05:18:00.000-08:00

The Sung dynasty was founded when Chao K'uang-yin, the military inspector general of the Chou dynasty, last of the Five Dynasties, usurped control of the empire in a coup. Thereafter, he used his mastery of diplomatic maneuvering to persuade powerful potential